Crashes, Slide-Offs Dot Indiana Roads

Numerous Travel Troubles Reported

Road conditions are treacherous across much of Indiana Wednesday morning after the second half of a winter storm plowed through overnight.

A tractor-trailer struck a bridge in the westbound lanes on Interstate 70 near Monrovia before 7 a.m., forcing westbound lanes to be closed. The lanes had reopened by 10:30 a.m.

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Several additional crashes were reported on area interstates, including one involving two tractor-trailers on I-70 in Greenfield that shut down the westbound lanes early Wednesday morning. The road was reopened by 10:30 a.m.

Two jackknifed tractor-trailers forced the closure of the westbound lanes of I-70 at 9 a.m. in Henry County.

There was also a crash on Interstate 65 in Johnson County near State Road 44 that shut down the northbound lanes for a short time. Other crashes were reported on Interstate 465 and I-65 northwest of Indianapolis.

"It's pretty ornery. It does blow the roads pretty bad," said motorist Warren Cravens, in Boone County. "This is the worst we've seen it this year, I believe."

Indiana State Police Sgt. Rod Russell described road conditions along Interstate 69 in Delaware and Grant County as poor late Wednesday morning.

"Road conditions have not improved. Falling and blowing snow have made all roads extremely slick," Russell said.

In the Indianapolis area, ISP responded to 97 crashes of slide-offs between 6 a.m. to 10:30 a.m., including six in which people were injured.

Road crews were out all night treating highways and county roads, but motorists said conditions were worse Wednesday morning than Tuesday.